Start A Day Spa Business - Business Ideas

Updated: September 15th, 2022
Start A Day Spa Business

Please note that the data provided in this article are estimates and may vary depending on various factors, and should not be considered as perfect or definitive.

A luxury day spa offers skin and body care, hair removal, makeup, and other body pampering treatments.

Luxury day spas have boomed over the past few years, and the trend will not stop anytime soon. Millions of people worldwide schedule to visit a day spa where they can relax, feel pampered and unwind. If you love helping people relax, starting a luxury day spa can be a rewarding business. It is fun and profitable if you have a good business plan and find an excellent location for your spa.

Starting a day spa business requires a great deal of effort, dedication, and most importantly passion.

If you're interested in how to sell day spa, or selling day spa online, you can use this page as a guide for everything you'll need to know.

Key Stats

market size
$99B
starting costs
$18.9K
gross margin
43%
time to build
270 days
growth
Organic social media
business model
Subscriptions
time investment
Full time

Startup Costs

Min Startup Costs Max Startup Costs

Equipment & Supply Expenses

$66

$1,200

Retail Business Expenses

$1,250

$11,650

Inventory Expenses

$350

$14,750

Advertising & Marketing Costs

$75

$9,636

Software Expenses

$0

$425

Website Costs

$13

$215

Total Startup Costs

$1,754

$37,876

Successful Businesses

Business URL Rank

Ste. Anne’s Spa

steannes.com

830,847

Mitchells

mitchellssalon.com

1,177,212

ZZ DAY SPA INC

zzdayspa.com

1,632,275

Synergy Face + Body

feelsynergy.com

2,003,227

Spas.ie

spas.ie

2,030,887

Sufii Day Spa

sufiidayspa.com

2,212,484

Evan Todd Salon & Spa

evantoddsalonspa.com

3,949,838

The Lux Day Spa

theluxdayspa.com

4,160,151

Spa and Wellness Association of Canada

spaandwellnessassociationofcanada.com

6,233,110

Spa Greystone Birmingham-Hoover, AL Day Spa and Laser

spagreystone.com

7,234,071

Norfolk, VA: Lotus Day Spa

lotusdayspava.com

8,032,108

Pros & Cons

Pros Description

Rewarding work

Starting a day spa business can be really rewarding work. After all, you are solving an immediate issue for your customer and you're working on something you truly care about.

Meaningful business connections

You never know who you will meet as a day spa business. This could be the start of an incredible business opportunity!

Daily physical activity

Day Spa Business's typically involve a much greater degree of movement than other lines of work. Most days, you will spend your day walking, running errands for your business, and performing a multitude of tasks. This can have a positive impact on energy levels and your overall health.

Amazing perks and discounts

Working in the day spa business comes with its perks! As a seller for these products/services, you typically also get to enjoy industry perks and discounts.

You are your own boss!

With starting a day spa business, you are the one to make decisions for almost all of the operations. Calling the shots can be empowering and liberating!

Local Community

One of the best parts of starting a day spa business is that you can develop a local following by selling your products at craft shows, farmers' markets, or even local storefront businesses! This gives you access to additional revenue streams and loyal customers.

Cons Description

Crowded Space

Competition is high when it comes to your day spa business, so it's important that you spend a good amount of time analyzing the market and understanding where the demand lies.

Finding The Right Supplier

Most businesses in this space go the supplier/manufacturer route, which isn't a bad thing! However, finding the right supplier can take a lot of time, energy and trial/error. If done properly, this process can save you months (if not years) of time and energy. More on this below in the "finding a supplier" section.

Motivation of employees

If you plan to have a sales/content team on board, finding creative ways to motivate them can be a challenge. It's important that you're able to offer great incentives and a good work environment for your employees.

Low margins

The gross margins for your day spa business are typically around 43%, which can make it more challenging to incur new expenses and maintain profitability.

High employee turnover

In the day spa business, employee turnover is often high, which can be quite costly and time consuming for your business. It's important to try and avoid this as much as possible by offering competitive pay, benefits, and a positive work environment.

Taxes

As a day spa business, you typically pay self-employment taxes which can be quite high. It's important to understand what you will be paying in taxes each year so you can determine if the work you're taking on is worth it.